Rebel Rock/Grand Hustle/Atlantic recording artist B.o.B has announced details of a major US headline tour. “The No Genre Tour” gets underway October 21st at Pensacola, Florida’s Vinyl Music Hall and then continues through late November (see attached itinerary). Joining B.o.B on “The No Genre Tour” will be Bread Winners’ Association/Atlantic recording artist Kevin Gates. Tickets for all announced dates will go on sale beginning Friday, August 22nd. Additional live dates will be unveiled soon – Read more…

WIZ KHALIFA AND YOUNG JEEZY TOP THE BILL ON THIRD ANNUAL UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF MUSIC 2014 SUMMER TOUR

LINEUP TO ALSO INCLUDE TYGA, TY DOLLA $IGN, RICH HOMIE QUAN, SAGE THE GEMINI, AND MORE!

TICKETS ON SALE ON APRIL 25 THROUGH THE LIVE NATION MOBILE APP AND AT LIVENATION.COM; TOUR KICKS OFF JULY 24TH IN SCRANTON, PA

Los Angeles, CA (April 23rd, 2014) – Under the Influence of Music, hip hop’s most electrifying summer tour, returns for its third epic year. Organizers announced today the tour’s massive line up will include hip hop heavyweight and tour founder Wiz Khalifa as well as Young Jeezy, Tyga, Ty Dolla $ign, and Rich Homie Quan. Also set to perform are some of hip hop’s hottest young acts including Sage The Gemini, Mack Wilds, IAMSU!, and DJ Drama.

The highly anticipated Live Nation-produced tour is set to kick off July 24th in Scranton, PA and will hit 22 cities in the US and Canada including major city stops in New York, Boston, Dallas, San Francisco and Los Angeles (full routing below).

New York, NY – Legendary Port Arthur, TX rapper Bun B and Houston rising star Kirko Bangz will hit the road in March for a national tour that will touch most US major markets. The Trillest Tour will kick off on March 6 in San Marcos, TX and will wrap on April 17 in Atlanta, GA.

Funk Volume Label Co-Founder Hopsin to Embark On 50-City Tour To Support His New Album, Knock Madness

The Tour:

On the heels of his long-awaited sophomore release, Knock Madness, LA-based rapper and label co-founder Hopsin is excited to announce a substantial tour beginning in January 2014. The 50-city tour will begin in Santa Cruz, California and make notable stops in San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, and New York, with Hop closing the tour in his home city, Los Angeles, on March 22nd. He’ll be touring with Funk Volume DJ and producer DJ Hoppa and bringing out other Funk Volume artists in select cities.

(New York, NY – October 4, 2013) — Atlantic recording artist K. Michelle has announced early details of her eagerly anticipated winter headline tour. Dubbed “The Rebellious Soul Tour with K. Michelle and Special Guest Sevyn Streeter,” the US trek is presented by BET’s “Music Matters,” the network’s influential campaign highlighting the next generation of superstars. Accompanying Michelle as special guest on all dates will be her Atlantic labelmate, singer/songwriter Sevyn Streeter.

“The Rebellious Soul Tour with K. Michelle and Special Guest Sevyn Streeter,” gets underway November 4th in San Francisco and then continues through early December (see attached itinerary). Tickets are on sale – please check local listings for additional ticket information. Read more…

(Columbia Records; New York, NY – July 18, 2013) – Internationally revered DJ Cassidy has announced plans to release his debut album via Columbia Records. With a mission of returning the greatest dance music of all time to the dance floor, Cassidy has united the most legendary musicians from the late 1970s and early 1980s with some of today’s recording superstars to write and record original songs for the collection. Further album details will be announced in the coming weeks.

DJ Cassidy has joined Justin Timberlake and Jay Z on their “Legends of the Summer Stadium Tour”—which kicked off last night at Toronto’s Rogers Centre—where he is debuting songs from his new album. The tour, which hits New York City’s Yankee Stadium on July 19-20 and Los Angeles’ Rose Bowl on July 28, will continue through mid-August (see below for tour dates). Read more…

NEW ZEALAND’S ROOTS REGGAE ROCKERS KATCHAFIRE ANNOUNCE HEADLINING U.S. TOUR THIS SPRING AND GREATEST HITS ALBUM BEST SO FAR AVAILABLE MAY 21 ON VP RECORDS

New Zealand’s Katchafire proudly announce their spring 2013 U.S. tour and the anticipated release of their greatest hits collection Best So Far, available on May 21, 2013 on VP Records.

Throughout April and May, the seven piece collective will be rocking major festivals as well as headlining intimate venues across the West Coast, Midwest and South in over 28 U.S. cities. The band is no stranger to the road and has performed worldwide with international acts such as The Wailers, Maxi Priest, UB40 and Arrested Development. For the most up to date tour schedule, please visit Read more…

Partnering with Live Nation, Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill will be embarking on his second domestic headlining endeavor aptly titled, the “Dreams Come True“ tour, starting on April 4th at Boston’s House of Blues. The tour will feature surprise performances from artists signed to his Dream Chasers label. Due to the anticipated high demand, pre-sale tickets have been made available to fans: Citi Card member pre-sale began at 10am local time, Tuesday, February 19th, followed by Live Nation’s Internet sale, starting on Wednesday, February 20th. The public sale takes place at 10am local time on Friday, February 22nd. Additional ticket information, show dates and RSVP options are available at: Read more…

By JAMAL FREDRICK

Over the past year, I’ve had an intense internal struggle over the rise of a parenting philosophy that makes me have almost knee-jerk reactions—that makes me respond in ways contrary to how I perceive myself. Progressive, liberal, forward-thinking, open-minded, not bound by societal constructs of race, class, sex and gender roles—that is who I believe I am. At least I used to. Until conversation on Twitter and blogs started advancing this concept of raising children—boys, specifically—in a gender-neutral fashion. This idea came to a head just before Christmas, when an online petition convinced the toy company, Hasbro, to create the perennial girl toy, the Easy Bake Oven, for boys.

First thought: “This is ridiculous.”

Call it narrow minded, but I take great offense when I continuously see things promoted to effeminize our boys. We’re fast becoming the generation where boys are being raised in a non-overtly masculine way—where they’re being taught to be less aggressive, less competitive, more restrained, gentler. And now, we want them in the house baking cookies. Word? Read more…

By NICK CHILES

It was a glorious sight to behold: a room full of black girls, ranging in age from 10 to 17, learning how to write the code to create their own mobile apps—and excited as hell about all the tech wizardry that was being crammed into their young brains.

That’s the magic of Black Girls Code, a brilliant nonprofit that was started last year by Kimberly Bryant, a black girl who codes in San Francisco and decided to do something about the serious dearth of other black girls who code. Through events, workshops, afterschool programs and other forums, Black Girls Code is already making its presence felt, reaching into young minds and planting seeds that will surely bear fruit soon as these young black girls realize there are exciting careers awaiting them in science and technology.

Both of my daughters, ages 13 and 10, and several of their friends, made their way to Georgia Tech in Atlanta on a recent Saturday morning, wide-eyed, unsure of what this “code” stuff was all about. When we went back to pick them up five hours later, they had not only gained valuable insight into this previously unknown world where people actually create the cool stuff that they play with on their phones, but some of them had actually made their own apps. We knew those hours at Georgia Tech had flipped a switch in our 10-year-old Lila when she woke up the next morning and asked to borrow one of our phones. Read more…

A lot has transpired in hip-hop since the Bay Area rap duo Latyrx released their 1997 critically acclaimed debut LP Latyrx: the Album. Now, after working on their own solo projects and dropping the mixtape ‘Latyrical Madness’ last year, emcees Lyrics Born and Lateef the Truthspeaker– known as Latyrx–are readying a 6 track EP, Disconnection. The innovative duo follow their creative instincts and get experimental on Disconnection , but they maintain their emphasis on lyricism that is at the core of their music. The first single off the EP, “Gorgeous Spirits”, was produced by DJ Replay. Guest cameos on Disconnection include Zumbi of Zion I. Production is shared by The Bangerz, Headnodic, and Amp Live of Zion I. Read more…

CHEMICAL BABY CLOTHING RELEASE THE INSTANTGRAMS COLLECTIONThe Fastest Rising Clothing Line That Brought You This Summer’s Favorite T-Shirt “MOLLY RANCHER” has a the Hottest Fall Follow-Up!

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (October 22, 2012) – Earlier this year Chemical Baby Clothing owners and Bay Area Natives Cellski and Darren Dosia took the phrase Molly Rancher coupled with a creative vision to the masses with hopes to create a new urban street wear line that separated itself indefinitely from the rest of the competition. Artists such as Chris Brown, DJ Drama, E-40 and more took an addicted liking to the Molly Rancher collection. Now, after having an insurmountable introduction to the industry, Chemical Baby Clothing (CBC) prepares to release its second brain child “InstantGrams” to its loyal consumer base this Fall. Read more…

American Gangsta, J-Diggs and Crew Get Arrested In Hawaii and held on $150,000 Bail

(San Fransisco, September 12, 2012) Most notably known as the youngest American Gangsta on BET’s notorious series, Thizz Entertainment President J-Diggs and three members of his entourage were arrested over the weekend and charged with assault and attempted murder on security personnel, after they were thrown out of a Big Kahuna bar & grill on the island of Waikiki. Although witness testimony confirms the rapper and crew were acting in self-defense, they were the only ones arrested. The rapper, who was recently released after posting his $150,000 bail, claims they are being railroaded because they are not from the islands and were only protecting themselves from the over sized, overzealous security guards. Read more…

Second Headline Tour For 2012 Will Kick Off This Fall, Following Release Of Debut Album

Critical Praise for Roach Gigz:

“The funniest rapper working” – The New York Times

“Roach’s new Bitch, I’m A Player EP is a lot of fun, a high-energy onslaught of sex-brags and self-deprecating jokes… It’s a nice little portrait of a rapper dizzily in love with the art of rapping, and with the places that his gift can take him.” – Pitchfork

“Here’s to the new age of rap. And Roach Gigz. Who is awesome.” – The FADER

The Tour:

Roach Gigz is excited to announce his forthcoming headline tour, The Bugged Out Tour. The Bugged Out Tour, kicking off September 7th in San Francisco, will be Roach’s second headlining tour in 2012, and will follow the release of Roach’s official debut album, Bugged Out, in August. Starting today, three Fan Club Bundles, priced between $25 and $60, will allow fans to pre-purchase show tickets along with three exclusive t-shirts. Fan Club Bundles can be purchased via Roach Gigz’ website. Read more…

San Francisco based electronic music promoters MalLabel Music and Hellefante have teamed up to create what is sure to be a legendary festival in the remote town of Belden Town, California this summer. The first annual Fractalize Festival will include a weekend of live music, DJs, vending and camping, with a wide array of headliner talent including Bay Area Rap Legend E-40, Rocker-T and Jah Warrior Shelter Hi-Fi, plus some very special surprise guests. This event has been in the making for many years as both MalLabel and Hellefante’s goal is to promote next level music in creative non-traditional environments. Leading the bass music scene in the Bay Area over the past few years, MalLabel hosts’ large-scale underground events with some of the biggest names in bass. Since early 2009, Hellefante has been serving the Bay Area with Dubstep, Drum & Bass, Grime, UK Funky to Garage, presenting some of the most respected producers and performers of our time.Read more…

Remember the 1984 song, “Let’s hear it for the boy”? Well, we need to hear it for the man, Braylon Edwards, who now plays for the San Francisco 49ers. This year, Edwards is going to make good on a promise to send 100 kids to college with $10,000 scholarships if they maintain a 2.5 GPA or better. He also told them to do 15 hours of community service.

Out of the 100 kids who were given the offer, 79 of them completed their end of the bargain. Now, Edwards is going to have to deliver nearly $1 million in scholarship money to the kids, which matches the salary that he is going to earn this year by playing for the 49ers. Read more…

Nationwide(BlackNews.com) — New website, MyAmazinRoots.com, features fine art images of ancient Africa. The images debunk the stereotypical and racist views of Africa as a dark continent by showcasing Africa’s Ancient History through fine art.

The various paintings, drawing and illustrations have all been meticulously restored and enhanced over the past few years. Much of it has never been seen by most present day Africans and African Americans – yet Africa’s fine art and depictions of Africans in fine art has occupied space in some of the world’s most prominent museums abroad for centuries. Read more…

San Francisco, CA(BlackNews.com) — UrbanSalonNetwork.com, the premiere online resource for Black Beauty Professionals specializing in Black Hair Care nationwide, today announced the release of UrbanSalonNetwork.com 3.0. The new site, designed to provide users with a convenient location for accessing service providers and information within the Black Hair Care industry, now features articles, reviews, social networking and directory listings for Black Beauty Businesses nationwide. Read more…

Nonprofit, business and philanthropy leaders will gather on October 12, 2011, for the Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy’s “State of the Race” conference and awards reception, celebrating local black philanthropists and spotlighting solutions that can fuel employment, entrepreneurship and innovation for African Americans in the region.

“We benefit from living in one of the world’s hotspots for innovation, and we aim to bring some of that energy to bear to collectively tackle issues facing Black communities,” said Cedric Brown, Chair of Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy (BABIP). “We are also eager to honor the generous contributions of individuals and organizations who strengthen this region by investing their time and resources in important causes.”

The theme of this year’s conference is “Beyond the Neighborhood: African Americans Competing in the Regional Economy.” It will take place 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation Conference Center in San Mateo. The one-day conference will highlight major trends in the Bay Area’s Black populations from the 2010 Census; how regional markets and governance structures impact economic opportunities for Black communities; promising models for employment and entrepreneurship; and tools for using technology, policy advocacy and leadership development to advance social change.Read more…